Our Story

From finance to fermentation

In 2019, after nearly 30 years in finance, John Goncher decided to radically shift careers. With his CFO background working with small businesses and his affinity for connecting with others through food, John focused his new career search on something that would combine these two interests. When the pandemic hit, though, John’s options suddenly became more limited—in a good way. As people stayed home and isolated, there was one type of food business that thrived in particular—bakeries. 

John followed that knowledge down a path that eventually led him to identifying an untapped market in his area—locally baked sourdough bread. He took this a step further to secure a niche—introducing a bread subscription model. His mission: to create a high quality sourdough bread that would be delivered weekly to subscribers in his local community. His bread, delivered directly to people’s doorsteps each week, would meet a demand for freshly baked, nourishing bread, creating a sense of community among his 'bread share' customers, and encouraging repeat business through the subscription model.

Proofing the passion

John spent months researching, baking, sampling ingredients from local vendors, and testing various bread recipes (with the help of family and friends as taste testers!)—until he achieved light, airy, crusty loaves of sourdough bread that he was confident would appeal to this community. 

In April 2021, using his kitchen oven, John baked and delivered bread to ten subscription customers (mostly friends and neighbors). During his second month, a few more households signed up. And then word began to spread. Customers liked the convenience, loved the bread (often still warm when delivered), and appreciated supporting a local small business. 

The rise of a microbakery

Within six months, John was delivering 65 loaves each week. He upgraded to a commercial oven, converted his living room into a bakery, and began selling at a local farmers market every Sunday. He expanded his offerings to include seasonal flavors, providing customers with the opportunity to try new varieties.

After the first year, John expanded to wholesale partners at local cafes, who placed orders for his traditional sourdough bread to be used for recipes like avocado toast, paninis, and other sandwiches. Then a bakery at a second farmers market engaged Wild Yeast Bakehouse to provide sourdough loaves to complement its own offerings.

A loaf at every doorstep

As subscribers grew, John realized that not only was he filling a gap for freshly baked sourdough bread delivery in the region, but he was also building a community—one doorstep at a time, one farmers market at a time. The personal connection with his customers, the joy that his products were bringing to households, and the satisfaction that comes from creating a product and literally putting it in the hands of his customers—this was his vision fulfilled.

Binding the community

Fast forward to summer 2025, and Wild Yeast Bakehouse continues to produce and deliver its high-quality artisanal bread to nearly 250 households each week, with a variety of bread choices. Local vendors sell the traditional sourdough; and the weekly farmers market customers enjoy focaccia, cookies, and an ever-changing rotation of bread varieties—from cranberry orange and honey spelt to seeded multigrain and cinnamon raisin.

Over these four years, Wild Yeast Bakehouse has created a community of bread lovers, bound by their support of this local small business that has grown organically and has stayed strong thanks to the high-quality bread and personal connections made.

Binding the community

Fast forward to 2026, and Wild Yeast Bakehouse has a new place to call home. After years of baking from home and delivering to local households, shops and farmers markets, John opened the doors to a bricks-and-mortar bakery in Wayne – giving the Wild Yeast community a place to stop by, say hello and pick up freshly baked sourdough in person.

The new bakery marks an exciting next chapter, but the heart of Wild Yeast remains the same. Bread Share deliveries continue to bring artisanal loaves to local households, local vendors stock Wild Yeast sourdough, and farmers market customers can still enjoy focaccia, cookies and an ever-changing rotation of bread varieties – from cranberry orange and honey spelt to seeded multigrain and cinnamon raisin.

What started as one man's passion for making great bread has grown into a thriving community of bread lovers, built organically through high-quality bread, local connections and personal relationships.

Giving back, one slice at a time

Wild Yeast Bakehouse takes great pride in ‘giving back’ to its local community, providing support through product donations, local school events and other event sponsorships, and participation in pop-up events throughout the area. For information about upcoming events, see Where To Find Us.